An Unnecessary Evil
Posted on November 15, 2009 | By Denny Tyler | 1 Comment
I have stated many times that I am not against coal in general. I have a few friends in the battle to end mountaintop removal coal mining that will tell you the same thing. For the most part we are, after all, West Virginians. As West Virginians, especially those of us in the coalfields, we know two things very well – coal mining and the mountains. We know the importance of coal as it relates to the local economy and its role in securing energy independence for the nation. We know there is absolutely no way to stop using coal for energy production without some sort of transition to renewable energy sources. However, we also know there are ways to mine coal without destroying our future or our heritage in the process.
I bring this up today because without fail discussions about mountaintop removal coal mining turn into an argument for or against coal. The proof of that lies in multiple phrases adopted by the coal industry to support/justify mountaintop removal coal mining – Coal Keeps The Lights On / Yes Coal – Clean, Carbon Neutral Coal / Friends of Coal / Coal accounts for xx% of energy generated in the US. All of which are designed to confuse and force the issue towards a fight for coal and away from a fight for our home. Nowhere will you see a statement such as mountaintop removal keeps the lights on.
Being against mountaintop removal coal mining does not make myself or anybody else an enemy of coal. We are not naive enough to think we can shut down all coal fired power plants tomorrow or next week. Something of that magnitude would take not only a long transition period but a nationwide effort and commitment as well. I am not saying we shouldn’t start transitioning away from coal to renewable energy sources. What I am saying is that discussion and the discussion about mountaintop removal should be kept separate.
Mountaintop removal is but one form of coal mining. Ending mountaintop removal coal mining will not stop coal from being burned for energy. Ending mountaintop removal will not force us into an energy void that would need to be filled with renewable sources. Ending mountaintop removal would preserve our home and our heritage for future generations. Ending mountaintop removal would push the inevitable battle for clean water further into the future. Ending mountaintop removal would force the coal industry back into traditional coal mining methods, which employs more workers, as well as preserve the mountains for crops such as ginseng, wild leek, and morels all of which help to support local economies and independence. Ending mountaintop removal, at least in one proven case, would not only preserve the mountains for future generations but would at the same time be a huge step toward sustainability for the local economy and energy independence for the nation instead of providing temporary energy and temporary employment.
The battle against mountaintop removal coal mining is not and has never been a battle against coal in general. It is, however, a battle to stop the annihilation of a sustainable future for our children and their children. We do not need mountaintop removal coal mining in order to prosper in the coalfields. On the contrary, if we are to have a prosperous future of any kind we had best preserve our one true sustainable natural resource – the mountains themselves.
If we have to mine coal we can do that, we have the technology, without destroying vast areas of the Appalachian Mountains in the process. There is no denying coal is needed and will be in our energy portfolio for the foreseeable future. There is also no argument stating that ending mountaintop removal coal mining will remove coal from that portfolio.
Do what you will with coal but stop mountaintop removal coal mining because it is an unnecessary evil.
Our remnants of wilderness will yield bigger values to the nation’s character and health than they will to its pocketbook, and to destroy them will be to admit that the latter are the only values that interest us. – Aldo Leopold
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November 16th, 2009 @ 2:27 am
YOU DAMN RIGHT!!!!